Device for grading and packaging articles according to size



Maf 4, 192e.

J. THOMPSO N DEVICE FOR GRADING AND PACKAGING ARTICLES ACCORDING TO SIZE Filed oct. 10, 1924 2 Sheets-Sham l B'Y r y I l ATTO NEY.

May 4 1926.

1,583,201 y J. THOMPSON DEVICE Fon 'GRADING AND BACKAGING ARTICLES ACCORDING ToA SIZE Filed Oct. 10, 1924 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 BY' v ATTORNEY. Y v

PATENT OFFICE.-

JAMES THOMPSON, OF GREELEY, COLORADO.

DEVICE For. GRADING AND PACKAGING ARTICLES ACCORDING To sIzE.

Application led October 10, 1924. Serial No. 742,882.

To all whom it may concern: p V

- Be it known that I, JAMES THoMrsoN,

a citizen of the United States of America, residing at Greeley, in the county of Weld and State of Colorado, have invented certain v new and useful Improvements in Devices for Gradingv andyPacking Articles According to Size, of which the following is a specication.

, This invention relates to devices for use in assorting orgrading articles according to size and, while especiallyvaluablefor use inrading fruits and vegetables, c ould b e use for many other purposes, such'as the` 1n screening of `coal, ores, y etc., The article will be described herein as used for grading potatoes.

. The principal object of the invention is to provide an efficient combination of sorting y lchains which will increase the efficiencyl of the machine, the ease of operation, kand the simplicity` and economy of manufacture thereof. Another object is to construct a sorting chain which can be easily manufactured, which will readily travel around drums or sprockets, 'and which present` a maximum areaof measuring openings.

' A further object is to provide means in a device of this character foradjusting the angle oftravel of the chains so thatthe time the articles remain on the chains may be controlled. f-

A still further object is to so construct the drivin drums of the chains that they may be'a usted to suit chainsof various pitches an vmeshes.

Other objects'and advantages reside in the detail constructionof the invention, which "res 1t in simplicity, economy, and efficiency andl which will become more apparent from the follo description.

, In the .fol owing detailed description of the invention, reference is had to the vaccompanying drawings which forml a part hereof. Like numerals refer to like p arts y in all views of the the desci tion-' In the rawings:- l

5o 4 Fig. lis aside elevation of the invention looking in the direction of the arrow 1,

F if the drawingsv and throughout (g. 2 is a' vertical Cross section through evice,ltaken on the .line 2 2, ,Fig. 1.

Fi 3 is a detail cross section through the c ain drive rollers of the devine.

Fig, 4 is a longitudinal section through thedrive roller taken on the line 4 4, Fig. f

Fig. f5 is a plan View ofthe complete device.

Fig. Sis a detail view of the sorting chain. Fig.- 7 is a detail view illustrating the method of attaching the .chainv bars together. This view is taken' onthe l-ine.7-7, Fig. 6. The invention comprises a supporting 11. The sorting frame 11 is horizontally pivoted at its forwardextremity, as. shown at 12, to the supporting frame 10. The rearwardvextreinity of the sorting frame hangs on hangers llvwhichconnect at their upper extremities with arms 14 carried secured on a horizontal shaft 15.` AV hand lever 16 is also carried by the-sha ft 15, which co-acts with a sector 17 on the frame 10 to hold the shaft 15 in any desired position. The elevation of the free extremity of the sorting frame 1.1 is controlled bythe lever 16. L

Journaled on the sorting frame l1, are an upper andlowerdrive shaft, numbered 18 and'19` respectively, and an upper and l lower idler shaft, numbered 20` and 21 respectively. The drive shafts 18 and 19 are lpositively connected together by means of a' Sprocket chain 22 and a sprocket carried by each of said shafts. One extremity'of frame 10 in which is hung a. sorting frame the drive shaftv 18 is providedwith an operating crank 23 and the opposite extremity of the ldrive shaft 19 is provided with a similar operating crank 24. The cranks 23 andy-24 are used .for' hand .operation-of the machine. Should it be desired to operate by power, the cranks would be replaced by a belt pulley or vchain'sprocket.v

An endless sorting chain, which will be hereinafter designated the second sorting chain25, passes around a drive drum 26, secured on the drive lsha-ft 19 and around an idle drum 2T, carried f by the idler shaft 21. y Ajsimilar sorting chain' of larger mesh, which will be hereinafterv designated the first sorting chain 28, passes over a drive drumy 29', rsecured to ythe' upper drive4 shaft 18'; o vcran idler v-drun 30,l carried on the upper idier shaft ,20; underan idler drum 8l, carried by the lower idler shaft 21 and thence over anidler drum 32, carried on' the lower driveshaft 19, back to the' drive drum 29.

It can be readily seen the operation of the hand cranks 23 and 24 will cause both the sorting chains 25 and 28 to travel in the same direction over their respective drums. In use, the upperportions of the chains travel rearward toward their drive drums as indicated by the arrows in Fig. 1. Y l Carried 0nV the forward end of the supporting frame 10 is a hopper 33 which directs the potatoes onto the forward portion of the vfirst sorting chain 28. A chute 3l is it (called secon'ds) and convey them to a chute '13,8 which. deposits them in a bag 58 carried by suitable bag holders The ver small potatoes of no commercial value. an the dirt and clods pass through the second sorting chain-25 to the ground.'

Sideboards 39 and 40 are arranged along vthe chain 28 t'o retain the potatoes thereon.

Should it be found that seconds are being carried over by the first sorting chain to the chute'347 the lever l-is usedfto raise the end of the sorting frame so that the potatoes must .be carried up an incline. This incline causes the stream of potatoes on 4the chain to have va `tendency to roll vbackward and assists inA agitating them sothat -the fall of the seconds and clods will be y facilitated.l .s

The machine lis usually placed on'v skids and-drawn along the rowsinth'e iield. The

to level upthesorting lever' 16 hereserves frame when the machine stands on inclined ground.

a series of. alternately-facing, bent iods,ll` held together by loop-shaped clips 42. It will be notedthat co-acting bends in the rods 41 form substantially square openings 443 for the sifting of the articles. The size oi' the openin 43 determines the classification of the pro uct.

The distance from one clip 42, along the axis of the chain, to the next clip 42 determines themesh of the chain. It will be noted, however, that each mesh has a hinge point at its center so that the chain will bend at each one-half mesh point. This is` l an unusually iiexible construction for a chain of this,"i character. The chain can be very easily manufactured since there are only" two parts--thev rods 41 and the clips- 42,

and all `rods in the same mesh chain are identical. rlhe chain rides rides over the drum onthe clips 42 which present a broad wearing surface.

In order to`provide1neans for adjusting the machine to receive chains of varying meshes, the drive rollers 26 and 29 vare oi' special andv novel construction.' lliey comprise a pair of disks 44 carrying webs 45.

lhe disks 44 are secured to the drive shafts and connected by L shaped blades 46, which are secured to the webs 45 by means ot' bolts 4'which pass through Slotted openings 42:5 in the blades. The angularly turned p0rtioiis oi' the blades form the drum surface for the Support of the sorting chain. 'Secured along the radial faces o t' the blades 46 are adjustable teeth 49. The teeth 49 are secured to the blades 46 by means of bolts 5() which are adjustable in slottedopenings 5l in they blades. Should it be ydesired to adjust the drum for a chain of larger mesh, the bladesare moved outward on the webs 45 until the circumferential distance between the adjacent teeth equals the pitch or mesh ot the chain. The bolts 47 are then-tightened. he teeth 49 are now adjusted along the 'blades until Vthey register with the clips 42y Aas the sorting :trame ll'is adjusted.

`The chutes 34 and 38, which",carry the potatoesto the bags are of telesepic construction and comprise an upper section 52 which is secured to thesortingl frame 11,

and a lower co-acting section 53` which iS y secured to the supporting frame-.10. By this construction, the chutes are allowed to p lengthen orshorten as the sorting :trame is raised or lowered.

There are two sets of the bag arranged to support two bags 35 at the'same time. 'lliis'construction allows one of the bags to be filling while the other'is being The sorting chains 25 and 2S areot' un` usual and novel..construction and coi'uprise' 'it is desired and understood that the same may be varied, within the scope of the a peiided claims, without departing from t e spirit of the invention. Y

Having thus described theinvention, what l claim and desire-secured by Letters' Pati u porting frame; a sorting traine within said supporting frame; .a plurality of', sorting chains carried in saidkfplrtin frameg; a. pivot for supporfing one remity of said sorting frame "from saidsupporting frame and holders 36 and means Mesem means for raising or lowerin the other extremity thereof above andv be ovv `Si pivot 2. A sorting machine, comprising a ,suporting frame; al pivoted sorting irame within said supporting frame, a piurality of: longitudinally disposed sorting chains of ileringmesh carried in said sorting treme for conveying the material which passes through' each of said chains onto thel surface ofthe chain of next smaller; meshA in combination with means for varying the vertical angle of travel of all said chains .SmumneOUSy SQ that saf chains will travel at an upward or downward angle es deaired.

. 3. A sorting chain comprising a series of connected, similar bent bars, each of said bars comprising e plurality of straight, equai, singularly-extending, alternately-par-A allel, sections separated by straight, relatively short, parallel, sections and terminating 'at each extremity in straight,similar, similady-extending, end sections, each of the latter sections being placed at an angle of 90 to' said. short, parall-el,` sections,

all portions oi each of 4said sections lying in the SameA plane.

supporting frame at ite one extremity;

4:. In esorting machine having a support-- mg frame, a sorting *frame hinged to saisi relity of exidless, edjaceiitlyplaced sorting chains carried .m Said sorting frame, a rotatable bell-crank ievercarried on said supporting frame and means for supportingrthe sorting rame .trove-Som one leg of Said lever said iever having. a' l other extremity of seid throw which will cause said chaine to travel at en upward or owovv'ard angle. desired.

5'. A sorting meclriineA comprising' two endtwo upper parallel shafts and two lower parallel sha'ts,

less, traveling, sorting, chains; one of said chains being passed around all four of said Shaits the other chain being passed around the tvvo'lower parallel shafts cnil l, so that the upper reaches of thechains 45 Wi be at'dierent elevations Wliiie the lower reaches are at the same elevation and means for conveying material 'from below the' up permost Areach tothe. top of the second chainp Ijn testimony whereof, I aiix my signeture.

JAMES THOMPSGN.

a pico ao 

